How much does restaurant POS software cost in India?

Short answer: most Indian restaurant POS software starts free or with a trial, then runs roughly ₹500–₹3,000 per outlet per month once you're on a paid plan. The spread is wide because ‘POS’ means very different things — a billing screen is cheap; billing plus QR ordering, a kitchen display, inventory, payroll and per-outlet P&L is where price climbs.

What you're actually paying for

Before comparing sticker prices, line up what's included. Two ₹1,500 plans can be worlds apart. The features that move the needle:

• QR table ordering — customers scan, browse the menu and order without waiting for a captain.
• Kitchen Display System (KDS) — orders hit the kitchen screen live, no paper tickets.
• Cashier billing with split payments, UPI QR and WhatsApp invoice.
• Inventory + recipe-based COGS, so you know the margin on every dish.
• Multi-outlet reporting and per-outlet P&L if you run more than one location.

The costs that hide in the footnotes

1. 1Per-outlet pricing — a ‘₹999/month’ plan can quietly become ₹999 × every outlet.
2. 2Setup/onboarding fees — sometimes a one-time ₹5,000–₹25,000 that never appears in the headline price.
3. 3Hardware lock-in — POS that only runs on hardware you must buy from them.
4. 4Payment-gateway cut — if every bill routes through their gateway, you pay a percentage forever.

So what should you budget?

For a single cafe or QSR: start on a free or trial tier, expect ₹500–₹1,500/month once you're serious. For a multi-outlet group that needs KDS, inventory and consolidated reporting: budget ₹1,500–₹3,000 per outlet per month, and always confirm whether that number is per outlet or total.

The cheapest POS is rarely the one with the lowest monthly price — it's the one that doesn't tax every payment, lock you to hardware, or charge to set it up. Run the math on a full year, not one month.